Canada and Great Britain agree to pool diplomatic resources to run joint embassies around the globe.

“The impact we can have to punch above our weight in the world, and to achieve freedom, democracy and security is not just about military might alone but about diplomacy, aid, culture and the promotion of our values,” British Prime Minister David Cameron told Parliament in Ottawa on Sept. 22, 2011.

OTTAWA—Canada and the United Kingdom will combine forces on the global diplomatic stage under a plan to open joint U.K.-Canadian missions abroad.

The two nations will announce the plan when Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird meets with his British counterpart, Foreign Secretary William Hague here Monday.

The agreement is at the heart of a British strategy for a network of British Commonwealth embassies that could involve ties with Australia and New Zealand as well. On Monday, Britain will launch that strategy with Canada.

“As the prime minister (David Cameron) said when addressing the Canadian Parliament last year: ‘We are two nations, but under one Queen and united by one set of values,’ ” Hague said Sunday in a statement to the Toronto Star.

“We have stood shoulder to shoulder from the great wars of the last century to fighting terrorists in Afghanistan and supporting Arab Spring nations like Libya and Syria. We are first cousins,” he said.

“So it is natural that we look to link up our embassies with Canada’s in places where that suits both countries. It will give us a bigger reach abroad for our businesses and people for less cost.”

Under the plan, in countries where Canada has a diplomatic office but Britain doesn’t, the two countries will share the embassy — and vice versa. It seems to go beyond existing protocols that Canada has in place to ensure Canadian travellers have access to emergency consular aid in countries where Canada does not have its own diplomats.

Canadian officials painted the deal as ground-breaking and said it’s the kind of arrangement that Baird has been pushing with allies since his appointment as foreign affairs minister.

“At a time when governments around the world face more demands for their foreign investments than there are funds, co-locating with our most trusted allies and making the most of our shared resources makes perfect sense. It increases our diplomatic reach in a cost-efficient way,” a government official told the Star Sunday.

“This is the type of out-of-the-box thinking that modern diplomacy requires.”

Still, the move could attract fire from critics who fear it will erode Canada’s presence on the world stage.

“I think it has a lot to do with the fact that this government is cutting (back) severely on diplomacy,” Dewar told the CBC Sunday. “And its priorities on diplomacy and multilateral institutions has waned.”

During a visit to Canada a year ago, British Prime Minister David Cameron highlighted the close ties between the two nations, reflecting on cooperation on aid, the global economy and military missions, in places like Libya and Afghanistan.

“The impact we can have to punch above our weight in the world, and to achieve freedom, democracy and security is not just about military might alone but about diplomacy, aid, culture and the promotion of our values,” Cameron said in a Sept. 22, 2011, speech to Parliament.

Later that day, Prime Minister Stephen Harper predicted that the shared history between Canada and Great Britain would lead to closer cooperation in the future.

“I think as everyone in this country knows, Great Britain is one of Canada’s two great mother countries and our oldest ally. But, more importantly, I believe that, in the years to come, Canada and the United Kingdom can and will accomplish much good in the world through joint action,” Harper said.

During that visit, Cameron and Harper signed a joint declaration that called for a stronger partnership between the two countries on commerce, foreign policy, defence, security and development.

In its report on the strategy, Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper portrayed the move as an attempt by the British government to push back against the growing diplomatic influence of the European Union, which has established its own foreign affairs branch.

While it’s not clear whether this move will lead to a diplomatic downsizing for Canada on the world stage, it comes as the federal Conservatives are looking to trim the costs of maintaining outposts around the globe.

The 2012 federal budget said the department of foreign affairs would be cutting costs, including consolidation and streamlining of missions abroad, in an attempt to find savings of $170 million a year.

Canada already teams with Australia in diplomatic efforts. Australia has agreed to provide consular service to Canadian travellers through several high commission offices in Pacific countries where Canada does not have a diplomatic presence.

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